Wagon-brake



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Shet 1. J. A. WHITGOMB.

WAGON BRAKE.

No. 477,979. Patented June 28, 1892.

, I u V 5 I (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

' J. A. WHITGOMB.

WAGON BRAKE. No. 477,979. Patented June 28, 1892. I

Witmaowa UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES ALLEN WVI-IITCOMB, OF COLUMBUS, NEBRASKA,

WAG 0N- BRAKE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 477,979, dated June 28, 1892.

Application filed February 25, 1892.

To all whmn it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES .ALLEN WHIT- COMB, acitizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Columbus, in the county of Platte and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Wagon- Brakes; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to improvements in automatic wagon-brakes; and it consists in the construction and combination of the parts, as will be hereinafter fully set forth, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a plan view showing the running-gear of a vehicle with my improvements applied thereto. Fig. 1 is a plan view to the end of the tongue. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view. Fig. 2 is a continuation of Fig. 2. Fig. 3 is adetail perspective view.

A designates the wagon-reach, to which the front axle a, and rear axle b are attached in the usual manner. The tongue A is connected to the hounds by the transverse bolt 1), which passes through the yoke. c of the tongue. To the front end of this tongue is attached a socket B, which has an aperture in its upper portion, through which passes a chain or flexible connection, to which the neck-yoke O is secured, the chain therefrom passing over a roller d, through the socket B rearward to a rod D, which is supported under the tongue by suitable eyebolts d. To the neck-yoke O is attached aloop C, which embraces the socket, and the rearward movement of the neck-yoke is limited by thestops B, formed on the under side of said socket. The rear end of the rod D is spread so as to provide laterally-extended portions 6 6, rear of which is a central eye f, with which a rod or link D engages, the rear end of said rod being loosely attached to a bar E, near the forward end of which is a slot E, through which the king-bolt passes for connecting said bar to the under side of the wagon. The rear Serial No. 422,763. (No model.)

end of this bar is supported by a loop g, carried by the brake-bar F, and beyond the brakebar the bar E is flattened and provided with a series of perforations for adjustably connecting thereto cross bars or plates F, the outer ends of which are connected by rods 9' to bell-crank levers G G, pivoted to the rear axle, said bell-crank levers being also connected to the brake-bar F by rods g It will be noted that by the construction hereinbefore described when the wagon or vehicle moves forward faster than the horses, as when descending a hill, the neck-yoke C being drawn upon will move forward the rods D and E and that the direction of the movement is changed by the bell-crank levers, so

brakes upon the wagon, but does not provide means for releasing the same or holding them out of engagement with the wheels when desired, and to accomplish this I movably connect the singletree H to the draft-tongue A by pivoting the same to a fixture I,-which is provided near its front and rear ends with slots i and 11', throughwhich bolts pass for connecting the fixture movably to the tongue. This plate orfixture carries the singletree, to which is con nected on each side of its pivot a flexible connection h, which passes over rollers is, pivoted on the sides of the tongue and extend forwardly therefrom to the laterally-projecting portions e at the rear end of the rod D. It will be seen that by this construction when the traces draw upon the singletree or the same is moved forward the rods D, D, and E will be moved rearward, so as to release the brakes.

The sliding plate or fixture I, hereinbefore referred to, has an upwardly-projecting portion or catch of suitable construction, with which a spring-pawl m is adapted to engage, said spring-pawl being of any suitable construction, and in the present instance consists of a rigid piece having a downwardlybent forward end and an apertured rear end, through which pases a suitable bolt, and upon this bolt and beneath the pawl is placed a rubber block it, which will hold the free end of the pawl normally elevated and out of engagement with the upwardly-projecting portion of the sliding plate.

The pawl or catch an is provided with a flexible connection m for depressing the same to throw it in engagement with the plate, one end of said flexible connection being attached on one side of the tongue and passed through and over the pawl, and from there under the bolt 1) and through an eye on the bolster to a lever 0, having a notched edge for engagement with the loop, through which it passes. By properly manipulating the cord m the pawl m can be thrown in engagement with the sliding plate I, so as to prevent the brakes being put on.

From the above it will be noted that my invention consists in three features. In one i11- stance the brakes are put on by the rearward movement of the neck-yoke; in the second instance they are held out of engagement by the forward movement of the singletree, and in the third they are held off or locked out of engagement with the wheels by a movable plate I.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In an automatic brake mechanism, the combination of a movable brake-bar, rods connecting the same to bell-crank levers which are pivoted directly upon the rear axle, rods of less length connecting the inner ends of the bell-crank levers to a movable bar, said bar being held in sliding engagement with the forward axle and connected to a rod carried by the tongue, the forward end of said rod being flexibly connected to the neck-yoke, a singletree movably secured to the tongue so as to slide thereon and connected with the rod carried by the under side of the tongue, and a movable plate, to which the singletree is attached, having an upwardly-projecting portion, which is adapted to be engaged by aretaming-pawl, said pawl being normally elevated and being provided with a flexible connection for manipulating the same to hold it in engagement with the projecting portion of the plate, substantially as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

2. In an automatic brake mechanism, the combination of the rods or bars D and E, connected to each other by a link and to the running-gear and tongue, as shown, a brake-bar connected by rods to bell-crank levers carried by the rear axle, rods of less length, also connected to said bell-crank levers and to trans verse bars which are adj ustably attached to the rod E, the forward end of the tongue carrying a fixture or socket B, with a roller, and apertures through which pass a flexible connection attached at one end to the rodD and at the other end to the neck-yoke, a plate I, movably attached to the rear end of the tongue, said plate carrying the singletree, an upwardly-projecting portion Z, formed on the plate rear of the singletree, flexible connections attached to the singletree and extendin g therefrom around guide-pulleys to the rear end of the bar D, to which they are attached, a pawl or catch held normally elevated by spring-pressure, and a flexible connection attached thereto and passed around and through suitable guides to a fixture O for throwing the pawl in engagement with the projecting portion of the sliding plate, substantially as shown, and for the purpose set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

JAMES ALLEN WHITOOMB.

Vitnesses:

LEANDER GREEN,

V. H. WEAVER. 

